1 Thessalonians 1:1: The retirement home!(click here for todays passage)

Many years ago, I read a story about an elderly Christian gentleman who had gone to live in a retirement home. One day, a well- meaning visitor asked him what it was like to live in ‘an old folks’ home.’ The man pulled himself up to his full height and replied with great dignity, ‘I don’t live in an old folks’ home; I live in God.’ Our primary identity as Christians (and churches) is in God. Above all else, He is our location, our home, our residence. We live ‘’in’’ Him first, and in our ‘Thessalonica’ second. Because we live in God, we can be at home anywhere.

Let’s think about three things in this opening verse:

Company: ‘’Paul, Silas and Timothy…’’ There is something wonderful about fellowship in the gospel; about being part of a team. These three men had been through tough times as they laboured in the cause of Christ. They must have been a great help to each other. They were a ‘’cord of three strands’’ (2:1, 2; see Ecclesiastes 4:9-12; Matthew 18:19, 20). Don’t neglect Christian fellowship (Hebrews 10:25), and value those you get to work with. What you achieve together will be greater than what you can accomplish alone. It’s not about competing, but pulling together to glorify Christ by making Him known.

Calling: ‘’Christians assembled by God the Father and by the Master, Jesus Christ.’’ The Message. When Paul writes about ‘’the church’’ it literally means ‘a called-out people.’ It has nothing to do with buildings. God is calling a people out from this world (Acts 15:13-18) to be His congregation, His community. In John 17 Jesus speaks of believers seven times as those whom the Father gave Him out of the world (verses 2, 6, 9, 11-12, 24). Dallas Willard speaks of the ‘great commission’ being about bringing people into fellowship with the Trinity (Matthew 28:18-20). We become the community of the Triune God. In the reality of fellowship with Him we are changed.

Cure: Here is the great cure for all the ills of the human heart (and of the human race). ‘’God’s amazing grace be with you! God’s robust peace!’’ The Message. Our greatest need is to experience God’s grace – His undeserved favour. We cannot earn His Kingdom; we do not deserve to be in it. But we receive it as a gift. When someone can honestly say, ‘It is well with my soul’, they have entered into a life of peace. It’s not that nothing will ever go wrong. They are not clutching on to a promise that they won’t face trouble, pain or death etc. But they know that whatever comes their way they are forgiven; they are accepted by God. Next to this nothing else really matters. Grace inevitably leads to peace. The Thessalonian Christians had a turbulent start to their Christian journey. Paul knew that they would face further stormy waters. But that did not alter one iota the fact that peace was their legacy in Christ (John 14:27).

Prayer: Lord please help me to live calmly in your ocean of peace.